Laundry on a bicycle tour

Apparently it is uncouth to dry my pink underwear on my front bicycle basket in Paris. Well it was an embarrassment to Li as were my five finger shoes. Not in Paris!
But I love my basket and the fact I can hang an assortment of articles from it. Primarily underwear and socks so I have a constant supply of clean fresh ones. (Little Ted, my soft cuddly sheep also has pride of place at the front.)
Laundering our clothes has become more important than washing ourselves and if we are lucky enough to have a bath, clothes go in first. Shower…..clothes first. We can prance around in our fold away ortlieb sink, like pressing grapes while in bliss from an overhead spray, often racing before the water turns cold or stops altogether within 3 to 5 minutes. The faster we tread, the cleaner we imagine our clothes within the grey, black puddle below us.
We have also had the pleasure of a laundry mat in Besancon, France. Apparently it was not appropriate for me to change into my warm clean dry trousers in from of the other customer waiting for his clothes. But they do it on TV……Li……”You are not on TV!”
We had the pleasure of our sleeping bag liners washed for us at a hostel in Cesky Krumlov after 50 or so days on the road. Unfortunately no place to shower the following day when we went to use them.
Drying our padded cycle shorts is almost a daily occurrence. Usually drying them from wet by the warmth of our bodies, I imagine this is somewhat like wearing a giant nappy but far surpassed the idea of saddle sores from not wearing them. If it is not raining they actually dry quite quickly. The only item of clothing that does not dry readily is our shoes.